Houston Texans running back Joe Mixon criticized the NFL for not enforcing its new hip-drop tackle rule on Sunday after he injured his ankle during what he saw as an illegal tackle by Chicago Bears linebacker TJ Edwards.

After the Texans’ 19-13 win over the Bears on Sunday night, Mixon posted on X that the league “made it a rule and an emphasis for a reason.” The NFL banned the swivel hip-drop tackle — a technique that league officials have deemed a threat to player safety — in March with the unanimous approval of NFL owners. Mixon left the game following the tackle by Edwards.

“Time to put your money where your mouth is,” Mixon wrote.

The league defined a swivel hip-drop tackle as consisting of three parts: a tackler grabs a runner with both hands/arms while attempting to tackle, “relieves himself by rotating and lowering his hips and/or lower body,” and then lands on the runner’s leg(s) and pins them at or below the knee.

Such a tackle would result in a 15-yard penalty and an automatic first down. The technique has become more popular in recent years as players have been reluctant to use their helmets during tackles, which incur penalties and increase the risk of concussions.

The NFL and NFLPA have made it a rule and emphasis for a reason. Time to put your money where your mouth is.

— ⚡️Primetime!!!⚡️ (@Joe_MainMixon) September 16, 2024

Unless it’s clear in real time, the refs aren’t allowed to throw a flag. But that doesn’t mean the film won’t be reviewed by the league. A player can still receive a warning or fine after the fact. Two New York Giants players were reportedly fined after Week 1, even though neither was fined for a hip-drop tackle during the game.

The NFL Players Association expressed disappointment over the decision to ban the tackle when it was approved. Players were concerned about officials consistently enforcing such a tackle in a fast-paced game.

After Sunday’s game, Texans coach DeMeco Ryans said he “couldn’t really tell” whether Mixon was taken down by a spinning hip-drop tackle.

“I saw that Joe was curled up and they were tangled up and the man’s weight was clearly on his ankle, and that didn’t look good to my eye,” Ryans said.

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Mixon’s injury wasn’t the only instance Sunday in which a no-call on a potential hip-drop tackle made waves. Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase was given a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty in the fourth quarter of a loss to the Kansas City Chiefs after he got into an altercation with an official over his failure to call a hip-drop tackle.

“We let him know we didn’t think it was a hip throw tackle,” referee Alex Kemp said of Chase’s play.

Mixon completed the game against the Bears with nine carries for 25 yards.

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(Photo: Ken Murray/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)